| |
| Hanssler Academy Series (Full price) (CD) 98 900/02 (three discs, oas: 44, 57 and 53 minutes: DDD). |
|
| |
| 98 900 – No. 1 in G; No. 2 in F; No. 3 in E minor; No. 4 in A minor. 98 901 – No. 5 in D; No. 6 in G minor; No. 7 in B flat; No. 8 in C minor. 98 902 – No. 9 in F; No. 10 in D minor; No. 11 in A; No. 12 in B minor. |
|
| |
| ASMF, Marriner (8/64) (R) (DECC) 444 532-2DM3 |
|
| |
| English Concert, Pinnock (3/88) (ARCH) 423 149-2AX6 |
|
| |
| Handel and Haydn Soc, Hogwood (8/93) (L'OI) 436 845-2OH3 |
|
This is the third time that the Academy of St Martin in the Fields have recorded Handel's 12 Concerti grossi, Op. 6. Earliest and still, to my ears, the most successful is that issued by Decca in the mid 1960s when the orchestra was directed by Sir Neville Marriner, with harpsichord continuo played by Thurston Dart. Happily, that set has just been reissued on CD. It was followed up by another in 1981, this time on Philips directed by Iona Brown (3/85). That has been deleted and is now replaced by version No. 3 on Hanssler, once again directed by Brown.
In this new recording almost all the tempos are brisker than on the previous Philips set, though in some instances only marginally so. Oboes are included in the four concertos (Nos. 1, 2, 5 and 6) for which optional parts for these instruments were later added, with a bassoon to make up the standard baroque woodwind trio; these are afforded brief but somewhat questionable solo status in one of the variations of the Menuet which concludes Concerto No. 5, and in the concluding Allegro of the Sixth Concerto. Neither of the earlier ASMF recordings included oboes. This feature apart, the differences between the newcomer and its immediate predecessor are ones of detail rather than any radical rethinking. Sometimes in the Philips set I found the upper string ornaments and elaborations a little over-mannered and predictable in their repetitiveness. There is no shortage of them in the present issue but they have been more thoughtfully considered, with less slavish imitations between soli and tutti.
The playing itself is infectiously energetic and very polished in ensemble. But there is a missing dimension here, one of nobility, of grandeur or quite simply, perhaps, of weight. The broad sweep of the melodies is one of the glories of the Handelian style. This playing does capture the exuberance of his music, though, and often its tenderness, as, for example, in the gently spoken opening movement of the Second Concerto, and the two expressive Largos of the Fourth Concerto. There is also a greater degree of dynamic shading in this playing than on the Philips set and, as with that recording, variety in colour has been sought in the new one in the sharing out of keyboard continuo, sometimes over-fussy, between harpsichord and organ.
What about recommendations? If you want a set of these wonderful concertos played on modern instruments then the first ASMF recording under Marriner is preferable to any comparable version currently available, though the newcomer provides a convincing alternative. If, on the other hand, you prefer period instruments then the choice is between recordings by The English Concert with Trevor Pinnock or by the Handel and Haydn Society with Christopher Hogwood. But I shall conclude with a plea, once more to Decca moguls, to reissue the 1950s set of Handel's Op. 6 with the Boyd Neel Orchestra (7/55).
NA